syncopated.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

hara-kiri/intervention

i have a bizarre dilemma.

here in the pearl there's a very pleasant 50m pool. recently i've tried to see if i could still swim.

without regular training, the strokes seem out of place, the kick is out of rhythm. most importantly the breathing is - desperate.

i couldn't swim 2 laps without coming up panting, breathless. and this is even when i'm trying to take slow, controlled (somewhat) pulls.

all the more frustrating when i realised that everything falls into place when i start sprinting. 8 strokes without nary a hurried breath. yet obviously i can't sprint 2 laps without being breathless as well.

thus the startling realisation that i was panting just as badly after 2 slow laps as after 2 fast laps. the only difference was the lactic acid in the muscles.

that's like...

learning how to do implicit differentiation before learning the multiplication table

being able to apply quantum physics before knowing why the darn apple falls to the ground

a bird flying before it can stand

playing petrucci before knowing how to play "happy birthday"!!!

it's funny how i can't swim slow.

. . .

indonesia's suffering.

a recurring theme is death. seems to be all around us.

i'm recalling letters from iwo jima. the stark image was of the soldiers' 'hara-kiri' - a group of battered soldiers pulling the pin from their grenades and holding them lovingly to their chests.

song is 'intervention' by the mighty arcade fire.

The king's taken back the throne
The useless seed is sown
When they say they're cutting off the phone
I tell 'em you're not home

No place to hide
You were fighting as a soldier on their side
You're still a soldier in your mind
Though nothing's on the line

tremors.

I can taste the fear
Lift me up and take me out of here
Don't wanna fight, don't wanna die
Just wanna hear you cry

Who's gonna throw the very first stone
Oh, who's gonna reset the bone
Walking with your head in a sling
Wanna hear the soldier sing

Working for the church
while your life falls apart
Singin' hallelujah with the fear in your heart
Every spark of friendship and love
will die without a home
Hear the soldier groan "We'll go at it alone"
Hear the soldier groan "We'll go at it alone"


neon bible is a splendid album.

Strummed at 10:45 PM (x)

the artist.
colin cheng.
3/4.14, 5/6.6.
acsi (ib).
10/09/1989.
sailor.
concluding@gmail.com

his experiences.
intersch 2004
beijing oep 2006
bordeaux 4.7 worlds 2006
los angeles radial worlds 2006
doha asian games 2006
hobart jan 2007
muse concert jan 2007
holland radial worlds 2007

his aspirations.
weight for laser.
breeze. chase it.
cut down on mistakes.
get to know pple better.
understanding. respect.
a cat.
discipline. control.
contact lenses.

his peers.
acsailing
cai
choong
elaine
han sheng
john loh
xin ling

his inspirations.
65daysofstatic
the arcade fire
christopher o'riley
the cinematic orchestra
damien rice
dream theater
elliott smith
explosions in the sky
hiromi
isis
joe satriani
john petrucci
liquid tension experiment
mogwai
mono
my brightest diamond
oceansize
opeth
peter, paul and mary
radiohead
rodrigo y gabriela
sigur rós
simon & garfunkel
thursday
vienna teng
yo la tengo

his work.
July 2005
August 2005
September 2005
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007

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